Men’s ACC Tournament Day 5: The Championship Game (3-14-2026)
By: Joe Dillard Jr.
Headline Photo Credit: Arturo Jones-LMS Network
(Day 5) Top Seeds Battle for the Automatic Berth in the NCAA Tournament
1) #1 Duke 74 vs #2 UVA 70
With two starters out of the lineup, that did not stop Duke from completing the ACC sweep of the regular season champs and tournament champs. This almost secures the Blue Devils the number one overall seed, who are back-to-back champs under John Scheyer, giving them great momentum heading into the NCAA tournament. Iasiah Evans led the way with 20 as the Boozer twins combined for 29 which propelled Duke over UVA who was led by Malik Thomas with 18 and Sam Lewis with 17. Thijs De Ridder, first team All-ACC only had 5 points and 6 rebounds in a matchup where Duke’s top three outplayed oUVA’s top three.
Ugonna Onseyso had 6 points 8 rebounds and 9 blocks as he was the anchor for the Hoos but just didn’t get enough chances as Dukes had 11 more shots although one could say 9 of the 11 would have been the blocks so opportunities for UVA were squandered and that cost them ultimately in the end. Great game with action back and forth as both teams look to represent the ACC and make deep runs into the NCAA tourney.
